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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. staff — a stick
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. craft — a skill
  6. press — newspapers
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cell — a phone
  9. saw — the tool
  10. cell — in biology
  11. staff — employees
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. craft — boats
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. press — a publisher
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. press — to push
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. staff — employees
  24. saw — past of 'see'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com